This invention relates to a kit for use in draining fluids from the body of a patient. More specifically, this invention relates to a kit for continuously draining postoperative accumulations of serous fluid from a patient over relatively long periods of time without requiring immobilization of the patient or additional surgery.
Postoperative accumulations of serous fluid are frequently encountered in patients, particularly when the surgical procedure has required the loosening of relatively large flaps of skin from underlying subcutaneous tissue and deep fascia. For example, in the course of performing a radical mastectomy, the surgeon removes substantially all of the patient's breast tissue between the rib cage and a relatively large area of overlying skin. Following surgery, it is necessary for the resulting relatively large flap of skin to heal with and adhere to the underlying tissue. However, an accumulation of body fluid, typically referred to as serous fluid or a seroma, tends to collect between the overlying skin flap and the underlying tissue. This collection of serious fluid tends to prevent the skin from healing with the subcutaneous tissue and deep fascia, and also provides a medium highly susceptible to infection. It is therefore important that the accumulation of serous fluid be removed from the body as soon as possible to enable the tissues to heal properly and rapidly, and without infection. In the prior art, removal of such accumulations of serous fluid typically has been accomplished by means of additional surgery for purposes of re-exploration and additional suturing of the wound area.
A variety of devices and kits are available in the prior art for use in the collection or drainage of fluid from the body of a patient, and some of these devices have been proposed for draining accumulations of serous fluid. For example, a variety of surgically implanted drain tubes are available, but these tubes require additional surgery for implantation and further frequently require immobilization and/or hospitalization of the patient during the drainage period. See, for example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,593,980; 3,233,610; and 3,654,932. Other devices propose the insertion of a drainage tube by coupling of the tube to a suction source of the type typically available in hospitals. See, for example U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,680,562; 3,703,894 and 3,982,546. However, these devices also require immobilization of the patient in the hospital during the drainage period which can, in some instances, continue over a period of several days. One other proposal suggests a catheter-inserted drainage tube coupled to a periodically operated manual suction pump, but this arrangement is intended for periodic removal of fluid from the bladder and is thus not adapted for use in continuous drainage of accumulations of serous fluid. See U.S. Pat. No. 3,752,158. Finally, vacuum bottles carrying metal needles have been proposed for intravenous draining of small quantities of blood, but metal needles are ill-suited for retention in the patient's body over relatively long periods of time. See, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,874,367.
The present invention overcomes the problems and disadvantages of the prior art by providing an improved drain kit specifically adapted for the continuous collection of serous fluid from a patient to allow complete mobility and normal activity of the patient throughout the drainage period.